You don't know what you're missing by not eating Turkey. It is orders of magnitude better than that fake-hormone-filled crap they sell as turkey in stores. My wife is not a huge fan of wild game, but I almost have to fight to keep her from eating all the wild turkey as soon as it comes in the house.

I'm sure there are places you could get a fan, if that's all you're after. Shooting one for the feathers alone seems like a huge waste to me.

Deep fry that bird[;)], then invite me over. You will not be disapointed with the taste or flavor of it deepfryed. Forgot, google Midwest Turkey Call Supply they have some nice fan mounts for displays.

Earl

ORIGINAL: silvestris

Is selling a fan a violation of the Lacey Act?

Great question, this is the Virginia Lacey Law, I think each State has a break down.

I am no lawyer and usally cannot figure out lawyers meanings or translations of the law. Reading the below I get an idea it is a no no here in Virginia.

To offer for sale, sell, offer to purchase, or purchase, at any time or in any manner, any wild bird or wild animal or the carcass or any part thereof, except as specifically permitted by law, including, but not limited to, subsection D of § 29.1-553. However, any nonprofit organization exempt from taxation under § 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, which is (i) organized to provide wild game as food to the hungry and (ii) authorized by the Department to possess, transport and distribute donated or unclaimed meat to the hungry, may pay a processing fee in order to obtain such meat. Such fees shall not exceed the actual cost for processing the meat. In addition, any nonprofit organization exempt from taxation under § 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, that is (a) organized to support wildlife habitat conservation and (b) approved by the Department, shall be allowed to offer wildlife mounts that have undergone the taxidermy process for sale in conjunction with fundraising activities. A violation of this subdivision shall be punishable as provided in § 29.1-553.

Turkeydude, first things first.....welcome to the forum. I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say that. Hope you find your time here informative and enjoyable.

Secondly, since you are a brand new hunter, I hope you were just testing us with your comment "not much of an eater, just looking for a tail on the wall". As other have suggested, I would discourage you from approaching hunting from the standpoint of not caring about the utilization of the meat of the animals you harvest. That should be the foremost thought on your mind, even if you do not care to eat wild game meat yourself, ...not to mention that wasting game meat is illegal in most, if not all, states. You should make every effort to insure that, with any edible wild game you harvest, the meat of that animal is properly cared for and fully utilized by someone...family, friends, or charitable organizations.

Having said that, I can also state that it is okay to want to preserve the parts of a turkey, or other game, that are considered to be "trophy" characteristics. With wild turkeys, those could be the tail fan, the wings, the legs or spurs, the beard, or the entire cape. Some of us even have even gone so far as to take up turkey taxidermy in order to preserve the entire bird, sans the removed meat products.

In your post, you asked "what do I do when I get it?". The first step is field-dressing the bird, which is very simple, and consists of, essentially, just making an incision between the "vent" (anus) of the bird and the lower breast bone, and reaching into the body cavity and removing all of the organs and entrails. The actual processing of the bird for consumption, and the preservation of the tail, feathers, etc., is also pretty simple, and I'm sure we can give you more detailed information on that if you want it.